There are many different financial institutions that offer prospective business owners and developers commercial mortgage loans, but each offers different rates and terms making it hard to determine which the best choice is for your company.  The good news is that there is a large opportunity for borrowers right now as the general commercial rate is down on mortgages and a great deal of information available regarding the options so that you can make an educated choice when it comes to choosing the terms of your commercial mortgage.

One of the first things that you should do as a potential borrower is take the time to perform some research and investigation before meeting with any lenders to save you time and make sure that you are not talked into a deal that is not actually the best for you.  By taking the time to look for the best commercial mortgage rates prior to any meetings with lenders you can make sure that when you take the time to meet with a lender it is for one that is an honest and affordable option for your business.  Luckily, the internet has made this task much simpler than it used to be.

There are many websites available online that allow you to quickly offer your details and specifics about the type of mortgage that you are after.  Some of these websites will actually search the internet for you offering the lowest rates form a variety of different vendors and also ascertaining if you are a likely candidate for any of these loans.  In addition, they can also help you get in touch with various lenders so that you can make your own comparisons and decide which lenders are worth your time scheduling a meeting with.

If you are not comfortable with heading online to look and compare the various commercial mortgage rates that are available for your type of purchase, you can also check with your local bank as a good starting point and ask to meet with a lender.  It can be helpful to at least meet with a professional lender even if you do not intend on taking out your loan from that bank so that you can get an answer to any questions about the terms of a mortgage an what some of the terms mean before making a final decision.

After floundering for two years, the housing market is starting to once again improve as most Britons seem to be gaining confidence in it.  A new survey conducted by Halifax, the high street bank, revealed that one third of Britons expects to see house prices continue to increase.  About 32% of those included in the survey felt that property values would steadily rise over the next year compared to 26% who predicted that they would remain the same and another 23% who felt that house prices will actually start to fall over the next year.

Most people were more positive about house prices in the area where they live locally with 35% stating that they would see their local housing prices increase and only 18% reporting that they would see their local area fall in price.  However, whether the survey respondents thought the housing market would increase or decrease most people did not expect to see large changes in housing prices or the mortgage rate with an overwhelming amount of 57% stating that they will expect to see only falls or rises by 5%.  Only 24% of those in the survey predicted they would see larger changes.

The survey also showed that people seem split in regards to what they think of the housing market, as half thought the next three months would be a good time to purchase a home and another half stating that now would be a good time to sell property.  However, with the threat of the interest rate affecting mortgage rates and the tough lending criteria still in place for many candidates consumer confidence is still low enough that most people are delaying purchasing a new home keeping the overall number of housing transactions low.

Compounding matters is the fact that 26% believed their finances would get worse over the next quarter and another 54% that stated they did not think they would get any better.  Another 52% stated that worries over job redundancy would prevent them from purchasing a new home or taking advantage of excellent buy to let mortgage rates to make a solid investment in the housing market.  An additional 225 stated that the threat of the interest rates increasing prevented them from making the move to sign into a new mortgage for the time being.

Increased competition within the mortgage market in terms of lending has le to homeowners rushing in to take advantage of the best mortgage rates before the interest rate rises in the future according to new figures.  The Bank of England is expected to increase the base increase rate sometime in the next six months leading to a rash of people attempting to switch their mortgages to a fixed mortgage before the rate hike affects their tracker mortgage monthly payments.  Estimates predict that a simple .5%-1% increase in the interest rate could lead to monthly mortgage payments jumping up between 70-100 pounds for the average home.

The average cost of a fixed mortgage loan is down to 4.41% compared to the 4.5% of May which marks the lowest it has been yet since the year started.  Interest attached to a five year mortgage has also dropped down from 5.6% to 5.41% according to the mortgage rates tracker group Moneyfacts.  The financial agent stated that one reason the mortgage rates have continued to drop is because of a decrease in swap rates which many of the new deals offered by the banks are based.

At the moment, most analysts are predicting that the Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Committee will not increase the base rate until Q4 of this year, but given the fact that the threat still looms many are taking advantage of the lapse and low mortgage rates to sign into fixed mortgages.  Interestingly enough, even with the threat there are also many homeowners fixing their borrowing costs and fixed rate deals are increasing the competition in a time when most would predict that the housing market might suffer another fall. 

This is partially due to the fact that many lenders have dropped their interest rates on fixed mortgages to draw consumers to them including mortgage giants NatWest, Halifax, Lloyds TSB, and Nationwide.  Also aiding in the rise of fixed mortgages is the fact that there are now more mortgages available that require small deposits with 31 loans on the marketplace for those who can only put down 5% on their deposit which is an increase of seven since the start of the year and the highest number of low deposit loans seen since December of 2008.  Those who can afford 10% deposits have also seen the number of options increase from 199 up to 244.

With so many first time buyers afraid to take out a mortgage due to the credit crunch and lending shortage that is leaving many in fear of getting turned down for fixed mortgages property brokers have invented a new type of investment fund that invites first time buyers to get their hands on the rungs o the ladder by paying only a 5% deposit without the need for a mortgage at all.  The group was launched by the Mill Group and offers first time buyers the chance to invest their funds into buyer deals at up to 95% of the total LTV, but industry pundits are sceptical about the idea.

The way it works is those interested in buying a home must purchase 5% of the cost of the home and then investors will put up the costs o the 95% remaining portion without involving an actual mortgage lender.  In exchange, the first time buyer will pay a monthly charge on their investment and are expected to pay out the remaining total over the next five or so years with a standard interest mortgage rate attached on the loan.  At this point if they cannot afford to buy out the remaining investment they can secure a mortgage from a lender hitched on the idea that creditors will be offering more loans down the line as the economy stabilizes.

However, Personal Touch Financial Services sales director Dev Malle comments that although the new scheme is unique, it will not offer the same type of protection that any FSA mortgage would.  He added that there is concern that terms, payments, mortgage rates, and interest will fluctuate at terms that are convenient to the investor and not the first time buyer leaving plenty of room for problems in an agreement that is not regulated by the FSA.

The obvious problems are of course what would happen if a borrower fell behind in payments and if it would simply be easier for borrowers to wait five years to purchase a home instead saving money to put forth on their own mortgage deposit without the investment risk.

After the Office for National Statistics said the economy contracted unexpectedly between July and September, expectations for rate rises were scaled back,  killing hopes of an end to the recession. According to the same sources gross domestic product fell 0.4%, against expectations of a 0.2% rise.

The Centre for Economics and Business Research, an independent consultancy, predicted that Bank rate could stay at its record low of 0.5% until at least 2011 and remain at less than 2% until 2014.

In its latest meeting The Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Committee voted unanimously against extending the quantitative easing programme, which has pumped £175 billion into the economy to boost growth. The decision prompted speculation about earlier rate rises.

David Page, an economist at Investec Securities predicts a 0.25 point rise at the start of 2010 with rates hitting 2.5% by the year-end, because of rising inflation.

However, the most likely scenarios are: “slow and steady” rate rising; “fast then flat”; and “fast and high”.

In “slow and steady” scenario, Bank rate starts to rise next July (with mortgage rates going up the following month) and climbs steadily thereafter, increasing 0.25 percentage points every three months until 2014, when it hits 4.75%. While borrowers would be paying a higher rate than the fix by the end, the tracker would do better over the five-year term spending less in the early part of the term.

Cheapest alternative is tracker, but, there is the benefit of an alternative , allowing borrowers to take advantage of better deals without penalty .

In the second scenario, Bank rate rises faster — by 0.25% a month from July 2010. With inflation taking off and the Bank of England trying to deliver a sharp shock to control it, this would be most likely.

Borrowers would have paid less in the early years, after which, the fix would be cheapest.

In the “fast and high” rising, bank rate is held until July 2010 and then rises 0.25 points every second month to hit 7%. The tracker would reach 9.24% by the end of the term and the SVR would rise to 10.5%

Expecting rates to rise faster, would be better off fixing now , but you will have to accept much higher repayments for the first few years.

What fixed-rate deals would be on market is a difficult prediction.

In many instances

standard variable rate (SVR ) is lower than the rate that had been paid during the initial deal. That’s the reason for many borrowers whose current deal is coming to an end to choose between  taking out a new deal or moving to their lender’s SVR.

Sometimes the mortgages arrangement fee cannot be justified due to the risk of defaulting so it must be due to the risk of interest rates rising.

Asking yourself if you should  insure against mortgage hike? There is only one answer:

Unfortunately there isn’t  any insurance that will protect against a rate increase.

Choosing to move to your lender’s SVR for the time being you should consider setting up a savings account in which the difference between your old and new lower monthly payment could be saved.

This money can be utilised in a future event of a of a sudden rate increase, giving you a buffer,  while you are looking for a new deal.

The only way to ensure that your monthly payment remains the same, regardless of any rate increase, is to move from your current deal onto a fixed-rate deal. But, even financial experts can’t agree on the way ahead.

Borrowers are facing unprecedented uncertainty over the future path of interest rates, which means a tough choice between low-rate tracker mortgages and the security of more costly fixed-rate deals.

Accordinding with L&C the tracker would be the best choice in terms of total repayments over the five years if interest rates rose at a slow, steady pace, but the fix would be better if rates rose sharply.

 Homeowners with low SVRs of 2.5% should also stay put. The  research shows that on any SVR at 4% or higher you could end up paying more than on a five-year fixed rate by the end of the term (in this „steady” scenario) and should consider remortgaging.

The Chancellor Alistair Darling will announce the Pre-Budget Report (PBR) next month. There are few tax changes for holiday home lettings, expected to take effect in April 2010.

Plans by the Treasury to change the system of taxation for holiday home lettings were first proposed in the small print of April’s Budget.

At that moment  the changes attracted little attention, but, opposition is growing as their impact has become clear.

As a result of changes, business analysts are expecting the move to hit an estimated 60,000 property owners who let out their second homes to paying guests for a substantial part of the year,  and 75,000 properties. Meanwhille officials have forecast that they will raise £20 million a year for the Exchequer.

They say knock-on impact could cost the tourist industry £200 million annually with the worst-hit in rural areas . Businesses will close and jobs will be lost especially in the West Country, the Lake District and parts of Wales and Scotland,  with high concentrations of second homes. Devastating consequences for the tourist trade are also expected.

 According to Toby Ryland, partner at Blick Rothenberg accountants, the financial implication could be almost unlimited for some investors.

"If you have a £100,000 income and make a £100,000 loss on rental income you can offset it all and so would pay no tax on earnings," he explained.

"It could be very large figure for people who have a furnished holiday letting as an investment secondary to their main income. The average loss is probably at least a few thousand pounds. The implications could be huge."

The change was justified by The Treasury  saying that the old taxation system, under which Britons who rented out holiday homes in the UK enjoyed greater tax benefits than those who rented out holiday homes elsewhere in the EU, breached European law.

Currently, under the furnished holiday letting scheme, landlords who rent out holiday accommodation in Britain are treated as traders rather than investors as long as their homes are furnished, available to rent for at least 140 days a year, and actually rented out for at least 70 days a year.

Following the changes such landlords will be classified as investors and the tax breaks will be taken away.

After the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) reported a 2% rise in mortgage lending during last month, the chief executive of property investment firm Assetz, Stuart Law showed himself about the future of the property market. “If lending carries on rising at the rate we’ve been seeing for the last six months then prices will be back to their peak in 18 months time,” he said

According to the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) latest report, new mortgage lending increased during September at £12.5 billion. This means up 2% compared to August this year, but down 27% compared to September 2008.. 

But, Is the rise in mortgage lending a positive sign?

The CML prediction was that given the difficult economic backdrop lending is unlikely to rise any further

Despite of Mr Law opinion, Andrew Montlake, director of mortgage broker Coreco, was more restrained in welcoming the lending increase. He explained that: “While these latest figures hardly set the world alight, they do highlight the continued stabilisation in the housing market and some undoubted positive signs.”

On the other hand, Jones Lang LaSalle’s latest report shows that all-property total returns posted positive figures in the third quarter of 2009.

 According to Ian Fletcher, British Property Federation’s (BPF) director of policy:  “This could mark the turning point for the commercial property sector”. But, his assessment of current market conditions was rather cautious.
"Obviously any good news is welcome, but I wouldn’t say that we are suddenly going to see the industry rebounding quickly from the traumas it has faced over the last year or two years," he explained.

Mr. Ian Fletcher also suggested that the Jones Lang LaSalle report wich indicates that all-property total returns posted positive figures in the third quarter of 2009  is it also accurate in its prediction that rents will only start to accelerate in four years’ time

The National Landlords Association (NLA) representative, policy manager Chris Norris thinks that an 11 per cent increase in the size of the average landlord’s portfolio over the last year is a positive sign meaning there are more home loans being made available.

According to the same sources, a recent research of the Association of Residential Letting Agents (Arla) relieved an improving in buy to let property market.

Mr Norris remarked that the reported rise in portfolio size from 6.3 to seven homes "demonstrates the resilience and counter-cyclical nature of private-renting that the NLA has long recognised".
The expert explained: “Experienced landlords are very keen to make new acquisitions."

Despite all these positive signs in buy-to-let business, as well as in the  almost intire property market, it is important for landlords to protect  their rental income by choosing a suitable insurance policy. Both Arla and the NLA have buy to let professionals urged to consider the various options available on the market. Especially landlords with buy to let mortgages are being warned to take out insurance to protect themselves from rent arrears. Landlords carry greater risks than the average householder, so, for they, making sure that are fully covered is vital in todays blame and claim culture. Insurance in buy to let business is essential to ensure that the investment and property portfolio are protected for the future. For owners of multiple properties it is wiser to ask a broker to look for a blended cheaper rate. On renewal, surfing the market should provide a robust policy that fits better the needs (say 13p per £100)

The NLA  research data relieved that about half of  rent arrears cases have occurred in the last year. Meanwhile the number of those without jobs in the UK grew by 88,000 from May, according to Office for National Statistics data.

The flow of total net mortgage lending rose in August, with the annual rate of lending growth edging upwards for the first time since September 2007, according to the Bank of England’s latest trend report.

Research by Find A Property has revealed 55% of first-time buyers are utilising familial assistance of some kind to help them onto the housing ladder,. However, their parents often recognise that the market is beginning to offer good value to first-time buyers, starter homes have become significantly more affordable since the start of the year, and this may be the time to take the plunge .Recent data from the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) shows lending for home purchase has risen for the first time in over two years.

Mortgage approvals for house purchase were broadly unchanged in September, according to data from the major UK lenders. Effective mortgage rates rose slightly in August and mortgage credit availability was reported by lenders to have fallen during 2009 Q3, though was expected to increase in coming months. Demand for mortgages for house purchase was reported to have risen further.

New buyers now need to find £11,000 less than they did in early 2009 once they have arranged their mortgage from the bank or building society. At the lower end of the market, asking prices have fallen 3.7% since January, while further upmarket prices have continued to rise.

Michael Coogan, director general of the Council of Mortgage Lenders, said: “As we surmised when we published our September gross lending data, this report confirms that September saw a continuation of the two-speed mortgage market, with lending for house purchase continuing to increase but remortgaging remaining weak.

“However, funding conditions remain challenging, despite the encouraging signs of a slight thaw in wholesale funding markets. This report confirms our own assessment of market prospects – the most likely scenario is a slow and long-drawn out recovery."